Delhi L-G Saxena approves transplanting 200 trees for development projects

New Delhi, Aug 12 (PTI) Delhi Lt Governor VK Saxena has given approval to transplant 96 trees for the construction of a multistorey residential building of the Northern Railway at Arakpur in the Moti Bagh area and 107 trees for a Central Secretariat building at Ashoka Road, Raj Niwas officials said on Saturday.

Not a single tree is being felled for the projects, they said.

In addition to the transplantation, 960 and 1,070 saplings of neem, amaltas, peepal, pilkhan and gular, among others, are being planted in case of the two projects, respectively, they said.

The recommendation for transplantation has come within six months in case of the Northern Railway project and three months for the Central Secretariat building from Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the officials said.

The railway project for the construction of a multistorey residential building will cover 1.2669 hectares. The Central Secretariat building will come up at Plot No 138, measuring over 1.7765 hectares.

The applications of the agencies concerned — the Ministry of Railways and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs — were submitted on February 17 and May 10, respectively, according to the officials.

As a result of consistent nudging by the Lt Governor to speedily clear development projects, the Delhi government — the environment minister and the chief minister — has started clearing projects expeditiously, the officials at the LG Office said.

Projects that suffered “delays” by three-five years have started getting cleared by the Delhi government in a matter of months now, they added.